Archive for January, 2011|Monthly archive page

Herbert Zweibon was a dedicated Jew and an uncompromising Zionist. He was bold and brave, and would not let an attack on the rights of Jews or Israelis go unanswered. When a statement had to be made, he stated it. When a stand had to be taken, he rose to the occasion. When the world needed to be corrected, he made the corrections.

Herb embraced a genuine Zionism which is hard to come by today. As Founder and Chairman of Americans for a Safe Israel, he worked to share his breadth and depth of knowledge concerning the Jewish People and the State of Israel with others. His firm grasp on Jewish history and current events provided him with a clarity of vision and a call to duty.

For me, Herb’s passing is a personal loss. For the Jewish People and the People of Israel, I simply don’t know how the vacuum of his absence can be filled. In an age when reality is replaced by anti-Israel propaganda “narratives”, an era when the delegitmization and isolation of Israel are the norm, and at a time when Israel’s advocates need to be strong and steadfast, we need a true leader who will stand for what is right and encourage others to do the same. We need Herb Zweibon.

I, Ron Nachman, am the elected Mayor of the City of Ariel since its establishment 32 years ago.

Over three decades ago I dreamt of establishing a city in Samaria, in the heartland of the State of Israel. My dream was to create a home for Israeli citizens, replete with education, culture, employment and a high quality of life. My dream has been realized.

The City of Ariel is named after Israel’s capital city, Jerusalem. Approximately 20,000 residents call Ariel home. In addition, the city’s population swells daily, with an influx of 12,000 students that study at the Ariel University Center.

I believe that you and I have a great deal in common. You are a productive person who believes in the value of actions and in those who take action, irrespective of race or creed. I, too, believe in concerted effort and meaningful actions, through which we can achieve our goals. If I would have to choose a motto that could summarize my belief system it would most likely be “yes we can”.

Please allow me to recognize our achievements. Peace is a lofty goal, which we achieve on a daily basis, here in Ariel. We live alongside our neighbors, we share our employment, we share our infrastructure and resources, we make higher education available to all and we conduct ongoing initiatives which successfully demonstrate the successes of a viable co-existence.

Similarly, I would like to recognize the United States’ significant contribution to peace in this region, as well as your personal efforts to achieve a feasible agreement, for which I am very grateful. Having said that, it is my personal belief that we will not achieve a true and lasting peace through negotiations on the White House lawn, rather through human interaction and cooperation amongst neighbors.

Mr. President, I cordially and respectfully invite you to the City of Ariel. I would like you to see with your own eyes the very issues that are currently being discussed, as maps and even photographs fall far too short of capturing reality. Only the land, the people, the views and the environment are capable of presenting the backdrop for creative and, ultimately, successful solutions.

Both of us, Mr. President, are driven with an intense motivation to achieve a lasting peace in the region.

This letter represents my official invitation to you to visit the City of Ariel, as an integral element in our pursuit towards achieving a true solution that will bring and end to the conflict, improved relations with our neighbors and a better future, forever.

Ran Nachman tells ‘Post’ he wants US president to see for himself that it is “not a stumbling block for peace.”

Ariel Mayor Ron Nachman has invited US President Barack Obama to visit his settlement and see for himself that it is not a stumbling block for peace.

“All the wisdom is not just in Washington or Jerusalem,” Nachman told The Jerusalem Post on Thursday, as he described the letter, which he sent out last week.

Nachman said he hoped such a visit to Ariel, located in Samaria, would shatter the ignorance that exists about the settlements.

His community boasts a university and an industrial park in which thousands of Palestinians work, he said.

In his letter, Nachman told Obama, “Mr. President, I cordially and respectfully invite you to the City of Ariel. I would like you to see with your own eyes the very issues that are currently being discussed, as maps and even photographs fall far too short of capturing reality. Only the land, the people, the views and the environment are capable of presenting the backdrop for creative and, ultimately, successful solutions.”

He added that he believed he had much in common with the American leader.

“If I would have to choose a motto that could summarize my belief system, it would most likely be ‘Yes We Can,’” he wrote. “Both of us, Mr. President, are driven with an intense motivation to achieve a lasting peace in the region.”

The residents of Ariel want to live in peace with their neighbors and in an atmosphere of coexistence and shared resources, the mayor said.

“Peace is a lofty goal, which we achieve on a daily basis, here in Ariel,” Nachman wrote.